Importance of canopy herbivores to dissolved and particulate organic matter fluxes to the forest floor

Few studies deal with the origin and contribution of organic matter (OM) fluxes from forest canopies to the variability of DOM and nutrient dynamics in the forest floor. Recent studies indicate a microbial and phytophages origin of OM in the throughfall of temperate forest ecosystems and reported inputs of dissolved (<0.45 μm) organic carbon (DOC) with throughfall range between 40 and 160 kg C ha−1 year−1. Data on particulate organic matter (0.45 μm